


if you're hurting, I can let you rest

by lol-phan-af (lol_phan_af)



Series: loving you is my favorite thing to do [3]
Category: Hamilton - Miranda
Genre: 5 Things, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Cake tasting, Dinner, F/F, Golf, Implied Sexual Content, Late Night Conversations, M/M, Multi, Nightmares, Nonbinary Character, POV Outsider, Past Child Abuse, Polyamory, Wedding Planning, issa mini golf, not described, olive garden
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-15
Updated: 2018-02-15
Packaged: 2019-03-19 05:02:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,250
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13697406
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lol_phan_af/pseuds/lol-phan-af
Summary: five outside perspectives on Lafayette and Thomas relationship within the alex/laf/jeffs relationship*"Do you want more water?" Lafayette asked, even though the glass on the counter was still half full. Thomas wasn't crying anymore, now focused on breathing as Lafayette held him."I can get it for myself if you want," Thomas sniffed and sat up. "I'm done crying now." Lafayette sighed and took their scrunchie out of their hair and tied up Thomas'."No." They took the glass and refilled it, handing it back to Thomas."You don't have to do so much, Laf. You've already helped me enough tonight.""Thomas, I have half a mind to carry you back up to the room when you're ready, getting you water is the least I can do.""I don't want to go back to sleep," Thomas mumbled, sipping from the glass of water. "Not yet."





	if you're hurting, I can let you rest

1.  
  
Inviting Thomas, Lafayette, and Alex over for dinner was Martha's idea. George mentioned something about their engagement, something offhanded he hadn't expected to lead anywhere, and then they were calling Lafayette and Alex and planning table settings like this was something they did on a normal basis.  
  
"Are seating charts necessary for this?" George asked, looking down at a small piece of paper she handed him with a diagram of their dining table and each of their initials assigned to a seat. "We're only five people."  
  
Martha took the opportunity to climb on top of him, grinning as he switched the paper to his other hand and wrapped his arm around her, hugging her close to him on their tiny couch. He pushed his glasses up his nose and stared down at what little information the paper gave him.  
  
"No, it was just for reference, but also are you going to sit at the head of the table or the side like it says on the diagram?" She pulled the blanket off of the back of the couch and threw it over them. "Up to you."  
  
"I'll sit by you, it doesn't matter. When are M and John coming down?"  
  
"Tomorrow. Lafayette, Thomas, and Alex are coming on Friday," she answered, yawning as the warmth from George and the blanket slowly lulled her to sleep. She loved George more than life, but this conversation needed to end as soon as possible so they could nap together.  
  
"We can plan what we're making tomorrow morning, then." George sunk lower on the couch, seeing what Martha was doing, taking his glasses off and setting them on the table. Martha hummed and nodded, breathing in the smell of dryer sheets and George's soap, and fell asleep.  
  
\---  
  
Martha took turns watching the clock on the stove and George as he moved through the kitchen, setting the table quietly and checking on the soup bubbling on the stove. She would help, she was supposed to be helping, but sometimes she just liked to take a moment to admire how lucky she'd gotten to find someone as amazing as he was. Not to mention that, despite his apron, Martha could still see his back muscles as he moved, and it was _not_ a view she would _ever_ complain about.  
  
"Want me to start helping?" she asked, drawing George out of his trance. His hand froze on the silverware drawer, as if he just realized she'd been sitting there for the past twenty minutes watching him do what she was supposed to be doing.  
  
"It would be nice," he said, eyebrows raised at her. Martha laughed, leaning over and kissing George's temple before hopping down from the counter. She got out the bowls and special cloth napkins, setting them out before going to get the wine glasses. They didn't plan to serve wine, but knowing who they were inviting over, better safe than sorry.  
  
"I hope you know what you signed us up for," George commented as he turned the stove down to simmer. "Just because they're in our house doesn't mean they're going to hold back their affection with one another in _any_ way."  
  
Martha hummed. "I know that, but I think it's cute. They're young, let them live."  
  
"I will, but if they start making out _at_ the table again I'm throwing them out of the house."  
  
"Fair, I can agree with that."  
  
"You mean that?"  
  
They stood next to each other and shook hands, nodding. Then the doorbell rang.    
  
George was right, of course, about Thomas, Alex, and Lafayette. They came in with a bottle of wine and a warmth in them, already hanging off of each other for it being so early in the night. Martha and George looked at each other, eyebrows communicating silently. They had nothing to say, for now, but they probably would end up having to look away from the sheer magnitude of how much they loved each other before night's end.  
  
They ended up staying longer than anticipated, until it was well past midnight and they were all too tired to continue a conversation. Alex leaned on Lafayette who leaned on Thomas, all various states of not fit to even remember their address let alone get a cab.  
  
"You all can sleep here tonight, if you want," George offered, sharing Martha's thoughts. "Y'all look like you're about to fall asleep right here."  
  
Alex groaned. "I ate so much cheesecake I think I'm about to die."  
  
"Well maybe if you didn't eat half of the entire whole thing, you wouldn't feel that way," Thomas grumbled, trying to get comfortable as he cuddled into Lafayette's head underneath his chin.  
  
"Wow, okay, I see how it is," He leaned more on Lafayette, who crumbled and went with him, knocking Thomas off the chair as a result. Lafayette screamed. Martha snorted and George turned away so they wouldn't see him laughing.  
  
Thomas shot up from the floor, straightening out his clothes. "It's an evil little man that I'm in love with."  
  
Alex cackled. "It is."  
  
Martha rolled her eyes and interrupted their moment, leading them to the guest room before going to bed with George. They didn't say anything to each other, didn't need to, as George watched her put on her satin cap before they crawled under the covers and fell asleep, not even wanting to pay attention to planning what to make for breakfast the next morning.  
  
\---  
  
The first thing Martha saw when she woke up was their comforter over her eyes. The second thing was the alarm clock on her nightstand mockingly telling her that it was four thirty in the morning. She groaned and got out of bed, throwing all of the covers on George and trudging down the stairs. She stopped in the living room when she heard voices, whispering from the kitchen. They had a bat hidden somewhere, but Martha, in all honesty, was too tired to go and get it. She inched closer to the doorway, making sure to stay pressed against the wall so she couldn't be seen.  
  
"Are you okay now, love?" Lafayette asked. Martha sighed, her forehead resting on doorframe. She looked in the kitchen to see Thomas sitting on the counter island, with Lafayette standing in the V of his legs, one hand holding Thomas' the other resting on his thigh. A half empty glass of water sat next to them.  
  
Thomas nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. It's fine."  
  
Lafayette sighed, kissing Thomas' forehead. "It's not fine. You had a nightmare."  
  
"Everyone has nightmares sometimes," Thomas muttered, crossing his arms over his chest like a child.  
  
"Yeah, _sometimes_ , but _you_ have nightmares as a result of other things that happened to you in real life, and you wake up panicking and then lie about being fine when you aren't, so my concern is entirely valid." They were silent before adding, "Do you want to talk about it?"  
  
"No. It was about my dad, who is dead now, so it doesn't matter."  
  
" _Thomas_ ."  
  
"Can we please go back to bed?"  
  
"I just want you to be safe. Did you take your pills earlier?" Lafayette took the glass of water and refilled it, looking over their shoulder at him as the sink ran.  
  
"Yeah, I made sure Alex took his too."  
  
They shut off the sink and turned to him. "Good. Drink your water while I try and find where Martha hides the good snacks."  
  
Martha smiled fleetingly as Lafayette started looking in the cabinets.  
  
She knew she should go back to sleep, leave them be and get a glass of water from the upstairs bathroom, but she couldn't move away. She understood this, she's done this before, knew too well the feeling of waking up to George lying deathly still on their bed, wide awake, chest heaving as he tried to catch his breath. Early on in their relationship, he refused to talk about them, but the longer they went on, the more he trusted her, the more he told her. To see this interaction from the third person was almost odd, but she found comfort in it all the same.  
  
Lafayette shut a drawer and turned to Thomas with a red box in their hands. "I found graham crackers. Is that okay?"  
  
"They're fine. Thank you." Lafayette tore open the sleeve of graham crackers and handed him half, taking the other half for themself. Martha could tell just by their face that they were only eating so Thomas would, the way they didn't focus at all on their movements, just watched Thomas.  
  
"You know I'm not going to make you talk about it," Lafayette whispered, "but I want you to know that you're _safe_ , okay? Your dad is gone, and nothing is ever going to change that. You'll never have to go back to him."  
  
Thomas didn't say anything. He sat, hunched over, staring down until his lap, fiddling with his fingers. Lafayette looked up at him, hands coming back to his hold his legs.  
  
"You know I love you, right?" He asked, looking up at them. "I love you and Alex so much. And I don't want to lose you and I'm _sorry_ that I can't always tell you how much I love you or how important you are to me but, _Lafayette_ , I — ." He shuddered, eyes fluttering shut and burying his forehead in Lafayette's shoulder.    
  
"Thomas, hey." Lafayette tangled their fingers in his hair, swaying them. "Is that what the dream was about?"  
  
Thomas pulled away from them, tears dripping from his eyes. "He, he was covered in dirt, and he was missing pieces of skin, all the muscles rotted away and you could see his skeleton underneath. It was like he just crawled out of his grave so he could get the last word. He s-said that it was _pathetic_ , what I became this in his absence, and th-that if he was still alive, he would've _whipped me_ into _shape_ ."  
  
"Oh, love. I'm sorry."  
  
"He grabbed me by the throat and told me that, if he were here, he would've made sure I never became who I am, a disgrace to my family name, and that I never went to New York and made you, _forced you_ to stay with me. That I ruined your lives by tricking you into believing that I was what you wanted, like you and Alex would ever _dream_ of being with something like me if you knew how horrible I really was inside. H-He told me how much better off you and Alex would've been if I just —"

Lafayette stopped him, eyebrows furrowed as they pulled Thomas back into their shoulder. He wrapped his arms around their waist, sobbing into Lafayette’s shoulder, full body shaking as he cried so hard he was dry heaving. Lafayette shut their eyes tight as they swayed Thomas again, trying to get him to breathe.  
  
"Do you want more water?" Lafayette asked, even though the glass on the counter was still half full. Thomas wasn't crying anymore, now focused on breathing as Lafayette held him.  
  
"I can get it for myself if you want," Thomas sniffed and sat up. "I'm done crying now." Lafayette sighed and took their scrunchie out of their hair and tied up Thomas'.  
  
"No." They took the glass and refilled it, handing it back to Thomas.  
  
"You don't have to do so much, Laf. You've already helped me enough tonight."  
  
"Thomas, I have half a mind to carry you back up to the room when you're ready, getting you water is the least I can do."  
  
"I don't want to go back to sleep," Thomas mumbled, sipping from the glass of water. "Not yet."  
  
Lafayette kissed him. "I'll stay up with you then. I'll go wake up Alex and we can just watch TV on the couch for a while until you're comfortable. And before you even say anything, I know he wouldn't mind me waking it up if it was for you."  
  
Martha sensed where this was going and went back up the stairs, sneaking back into bed before she was seen. George groaned, rolling over to her.  
  
"Did you get water?" He asked, eyes still closed. "I'm so thirsty."  
  
Martha smiled and kissed his forehead. "No, Lafayette and Thomas were having a _moment_ in the kitchen and I couldn't get in," she answered, pulling the covers up around both of their shoulders.  
  
George sighed, eyebrows furrowed. "A moment?"  
  
"Thomas had a nightmare about something. He's okay now; Lafayette has him and they're gonna wake up Alex and just _chill_ for a little bit."  
  
"Oh,” he whispered, “okay." He kissed her, saying nothing, but saying a lot all at once. "Should I start breakfast?"  
  
"No, it's only five. Lay in bed with me for a little while."  
  
She watched him try to protest, to make claims about his routine and not wanting to break it, but he said nothing. Instead, George let Martha curl into his chest before hugging her closer and conceding. She buried her nose in George's neck, sighing against him as he melted into her.  
  
"I love you," George whispered.  
  
Martha smiled. "Love you too."  
  
When they woke up again at eight o'clock and went downstairs to start breakfast, Thomas, Lafayette, and Alex were all fast asleep on the couch, all laying on top of each other like there was nowhere else they’d rather be.  
  
2.  
  
_(4:07)_ **_…..slime man_ ** _: hey,,,,hercules,,,,,my love and light and life_ _  
_ _  
_ _(4:11)_ **_the best mom_ ** _: hold on_ _  
_ _  
_ _(4:37)_ **_the best mom_ ** _: okay I'm here also No we both have Different loves and you have Twice the amount_ _  
_ _  
_ _(4:37)_ **_…..slime man_ ** _: ??? were you just having sex ??? at four in the fucking afternoon???_ _  
_ _  
_ _(4:38)_ **_the best mom_ ** _: ???? how do you fucking know that ????_ _  
_ _  
_ _(4:39)_ **_…..slime man_ ** _: bc you literally wake up when I text you/drop literally anything and everything you're doing even though I don't ask you to do that bc you're wild and the Only plausible explanation is that you were having sex bc I know you don't have a date tonight you left your planner at my house wide the fuck open_ _  
_ _  
_ _(4:40)_ **_the best mom_ ** _: you scare me_ _  
_ _  
_ _(4:40)_ **_the best mom_ ** _: but also what did you Want me for_ _  
_ _  
_ _(4:41)_ **_…..slime man_ ** _: oh!! right !! ya uHH we have an thing for cake tasting tomorrow but I canT GO!! bc I have an eye doctor appointment and if we cancel either one then we don't have another opening for months and You can go to the cake tasting For Me but sadly you cannot go to the eye doctor for me and get my fucking bifocals bc I'm like ""blind"" or whatever_ _  
_ _  
_ _(4:42)_ **_the best mom_ ** _: you want me,,,to do wedding things,,,,with your signifs,,,,who are gross bc you're gross and y'all are each other's types_ _  
_ _  
_ _(4:42)_ **_…..slime man_ ** _: you can bring john_ _  
_ _  
_ _(4:43)_ **_the best mom_ ** _: deal_ _  
_ _  
_ _(4:44)_ **_…..slime man_ ** _: thANK YOU HERCULES <3 <3 <3 <3 ILYSM AND THOMAS AND LAF SAID THEYRE GONNA KISS YA WHEN YOU GET THERE BC THEY WERE WORRIED I WOULDNT HAVE A SAY IN THE CAKE BUT NOW I DO BC WE HAVE THE SAME FOOD TASTE _ _  
_ _  
_ _(4:45)_ **_the best mom_ ** _: I am literally doing this for free cake and a date with my boyfriend that I Don't have to pay for this is selfish by all means_ _  
_ _  
_ _(4:45)_ **_…..slime man_ ** _: ,,,,,and I respect that,,,,_ _  
_ _  
_ _(4:46)_ **_the best mom_ ** _: tHIs is john and I have a question as to Where on his face lafayette and thomas plan to kiss him bc,,,,,_ _  
_ _  
_ _(4:46)_ **_…..slime man_ ** _: they just said ;) you'll have to get there and find out (; and yes they did wink to punctuate_ _  
_ _  
_ _(4:47)_ **_…..slime man_ ** _: so have fun with that!!_ _  
_ _  
_ _(4:48)_ **_the best mom_ ** _: ,,,wOW_ _  
_ _  
_ \---  
  
"Hey, Hercules, my lovely boyfriend who is very dear to me, to be honest, I'm fucking dreading this," John said, leaning against the opposite door of the taxi as he looked at Hercules.  
  
He snorted. "Why?"  
  
"Well, first of all, the last time I spoke to Lafayette _outside_ of work, I basically asked them if Thomas and Alex had regular fist fights with each other and got _literally_ obliterated and then had to be told about an aspect of their sex life that I didn't _want_ , not to mention that Alex is my ex-boyfriend and I don't want to stand there knowing that we know the same weird things about Alex and his… _preferences_ ." He sighed before adding, "If they mention anything about _either_ thing, I'm going to combust."  
  
Hercules paused and then burst out laughing, tears springing to his eyes as the cab rolled to a stop in front of where Thomas and Lafayette stood on the corner. John glared at him before getting out of the car, tips of his ears blushing red.  
  
"Aw, you're so tiny!" Lafayette squeaked, poking Thomas' sides before they noticed Hercules and John. They towered over him in the tall heels they wore, giving them the opportunity to mock the height of Thomas however much they please without Thomas being able to say or do a damn thing about it.  
  
"Stop that!" Thomas yelled, giggling too much to make it a convincing plead. He tried to push them away, but all the blood rushing to his face made it more difficult for him to make any progress.  
  
"You're basically the height of _notre crevette_ now! So cute!" They pinched his cheeks and Thomas yelped before surrendering, putting his hands on their waist and waiting for it to be over. They tried to kiss him but he pushed their face away, still laughing.  
  
"This is _disgusting_ ," John commented, but he looked at them with sort of a warm fondness that betrayed him. Hercules kissed the top of his head.  
  
"I know, but so are we."  
  
"Oh, hi, Hercules and John!" Lafayette said, Thomas' hand still covering their entire face. "How long have you two been here?"  
  
"Long enough to see all of _that_ ," Hercules answered, grinning as John waved at them but couldn't say anything. Hercules wanted to kiss him, but didn't want to get called out for being a hypocrite, so he did nothing.  
  
" _Mon beau_ is tiny now, it's not my fault." Lafayette smiled and kissed Thomas' cheek. Thomas turned beet red and jostled them.  
  
"Shut up…"  
  
"Oh, also we're a little bit early, but Thomas' favorite store is on this street and he said he'd buy me ice cream later so I gave in because he's so small and cute!" Lafayette pinched his cheeks again, making Thomas scream. John smiled.  
  
"I'm happy these are the people Alex ended up with." He looked up at Hercules, beaming, and Hercules couldn't resist. He leaned down and kissed him, holding his face in his hands. John hummed, wrapping his arms around Hercules' neck.  
  
After being called a hypocrite, Hercules struggling and failing to defend his honor, and being kissed on the cheeks but Lafayette and Thomas so hard it hurt, the four of them walked further down the street and into a store _filled_ with bubble bath and different soaps. John looked like he was in heaven, which gave Hercules ideas that he really didn't want to think about in public, let alone in front of his best friend's fiances. Lafayette stood behind Thomas, their head on resting on top of his, as they looked a shelf of soap that all had the word silk somewhere in the description.  
  
"Hercules, I love you, but you're about to see a side of me I _never_ wanted you to," John whispered.  
  
"If I buy you one of these things does that mean that you'll get in the bath with me?" Hercules asked, unbelieving that in his eight months of being in a relationship with John that they never actually did that. They've done a lot of _other_ things, but not this one thing Hercules now wanted more than he ever thought possible.  
  
John looked over at him before hauling him down and kissing him. "Hercules, I'd take a bath with you without you having to buy me anything." He kissed him again. "Besides, I brought my credit card and you brought twenty dollars and whatever change you have in those jeans."  
  
"It's rude, but you're right."  
  
"Now, come on," John said, putting Hercules' hands on his shoulders and walking further into the store.  
  
Hercules paid painstaking attention to everything John picked out. Christmas was coming up in a couple of months and Hercules wanted it to be perfect; he'd never actually been in a relationship this long, and while his fears of fucking it up had mostly faded, his fear of the size of John's bank account and his attention to detail remained.  
  
They ran into Lafayette and Thomas where they left them, standing looking at bubble bath. These were different than the other ones in the store, these ones had certain moods or situations attached to them.  
  
" _Gilbert_ , I need them. This one is supposed to make you sleepy, and this one is supposed to relax you. Then there's the romantic one that would be...nice…" He turned to face Lafayette behind him to wiggle his eyebrows. "Very nice."  
  
" _Thomas_ . We need to get to the bakery," Lafayette whined, not even entertaining this.  
  
"Perfect, I can check out and then we can go." He grabbed the three bottles from the shelf along with a few others and went to check out, Lafayette sighing and following. John went after Lafayette, holding armfuls of stuff Hercules didn't even see him pick up.  
  
"I can't believe you," Lafayette sighed, carrying the bag from the store while Thomas read the back of the bottle.  
  
"This is going to be cute! Besides, I know you don't have that big ass bathtub in the en suite because you want to bathe _alone_ ."  
  
Lafayette looked away from him. "We're in public."  
  
Thomas hummed and leaned in close to them. "Never stopped you before."  
  
"Can y'all _stop_ ? I just wanted free cake and to spend time with Hercules, I never _asked_ for this."  
  
Hercules felt the city around them stop and turn cold as both Lafayette and Thomas turned to him, the warmth and flirtation in their eyes from each other drained, all traces of it gone like it never happened. Chills ran down Hercules' spine as they smiled, but their eyes were empty.  
  
Thomas furrowed his eyebrows. "John, do you remember that one time when you asked Lafayette if I punched Alex, like, on the regular, and then found out we were actually having sex because they _explained it_ **_to you_ ** ?"  
  
Lafayette squinted, "And do you remember last New Years? At Hercules' house? Do I need to say more?"  
  
Hercules looked over at John, who was redder than Hercules had ever seen him, mixture of embarrassment and wild rage in his eyes. Hercules didn't know if he wanted to laugh, fight, or die, just wanted to get this cake tasting over with so Alex wasn't disappointed in him. God, he hated making Alex upset, when he went into that endless well of forgiveness he had and insisted it was fine, but Hercules disagreed, and in turn tried to do everything to make it up to him until he was satisfied with his own apology. How Thomas didn't drain his bank account whenever the two of them got into an argument would always remain a mystery to him.  
  
They all made it to the cake tasting in one piece, trying little slices of fucking heaven on earth for a good hour and a half before deciding on the plain chocolate one and wishing John would stop moaning out loud every time he took a bite. People were starting to stare, and Hercules was starting to get light headed.  
  
"I like the strawberry one," Lafayette told them once they tried all of them, small plates and mini tasting forks set out in front of them for miles. Thomas kept eating a slice vanilla, like it was the last thing on earth he would ever stop doing.  
  
"I _love_ this."  
  
"I think Alex would like the chocolate one," Hercules muttered. Lafayette and Thomas nodded in agreement then sighed, leaning back in their chairs. Thomas' head leaned on Lafayette's shoulder.  
  
"Which one do we get?" Thomas questioned, grabbing Lafayette's hand and looking at the ring on their finger.  
  
"Well our cake is three tiers anyway, we could always do each tier is a different flavor," Lafayette suggested. "But then who would get the biggest tier?"  
  
Thomas laughed. "We should do it by age order, oldest gets the biggest."  
  
"That's so biased, I hate you."  
  
"What if we do six tiers and I buy cheesecake to take home?"  
  
Lafayette looked up at him, pouting. "I love you again."  
  
Hercules and John looked at each other again before Alex bustled in, sweatpants and a shirt that's too big on him, checkbook in one of his hands. John jumped as the heavy glass doors burst open, the quiet atmosphere of the bakery interrupted by the human hurricane of a man himself.  
  
"Hi loves!" He chirped. "My appointment ended early because instead of looking for new glasses I decided to keep the old ones for a little while, and I thought I'd stop in just to see if Hercules failed me."  
  
Lafayette and Thomas smiled at him like they'd never seen him before, sitting him down in a chair in between them and kissing both sides of his head. Hercules rolled his eyes while John laughed at him, kissing his cheek.  
  
"The lack of faith," Hercules muttered and pushed what was left over from his slice of chocolate cake at him. "Here's the one I picked for you."  
  
It took Alex five seconds to process the pure beauty of the cake he just bit into, eyes wide with his mouth opened in an O. Thomas and Lafayette grinned at each other from over his head, eyes so full of love for one another that it made Hercules suddenly feel like a creep for sitting at a table he was invited to be at. Alex said nothing for a minute, then set his fork gently on the table.  
  
"I need it. I need this to be our wedding cake, _please_ ."  
  
"Well, _mon petit pois_ ," Lafayette began, kissing Alex's nose, "we were thinking a six tier cake, with each of our choices having two tiers, because Thomas wanted to do it by age because he hates me."  
  
Thomas laughed. "I do not!"  
  
"Aw, Lafayette is the youngest," Alex cooed, pinching their cheek. "Our little babe."  
  
"Sto-op," Lafayette whined, frowning at Alex. "I'm only a few months younger than you."  
  
"Nine months," Alex specified. "You might not've even been conceived by the time I was born."  
  
Lafayette scrunched up their nose. "Gross, and also wrong. Eight months."  
  
" _Whatever_ ."  
  
"Wait," John interrupted. The whole table was silent. "How many people are coming to your wedding? Because six tiers of cake feeds, like, a _lot_ of people."  
  
Lafayette shrugged. "Whatever we have left we'll just wrap up and take to Monticello."  
  
Hercules listened absently to the conversation with John about their plan to go to Monticello for their honeymoon, having heard a fifteen minute speech from Alex about how excited he was to spend two weeks alone with Lafayette and Thomas and just fucking chill for like, a minute, and in a place where meeting people and being around strangers was _unnecessary_ . There were also some parts about how loud he can be with nobody living near him, which naturally segued into a sex conversation, which Hercules tried not to recall now.  
  
Hercules made a few comments when he first heard Alex talk about it, along with the misbelief that Thomas was rich enough to have his own estate, not just house, but an _estate_ , built for him. Alex wasn't stupid, he knew how rich both of his significant others were, but Hercules also knew, and was kind of shocked but not shocked by, the fact that he didn't care. Alex was just grateful to have them and to be able to love them, and Hercules was so happy his best friend had people who loved him more than life itself, willing to give up everything they had just to be with him.  
  
Alex watched Thomas and Lafayette talk to John, small smile on his face. He leaned forward and kissed their cheeks. They stopped talking and looked at him.  
  
"I'm really lucky to have you both," he whispered, taking their hands.  
  
"Alex!" Thomas squeaked, taking Alex's face in his hands and kissing him. "Are you coming with us to the vet later?"  
  
Alex nodded. "Yeah. Then we could go home and try the bubble bath Lafayette told me you bought." He smiled and kissed Thomas' cheeks, smiling as he blushed.  
  
He looked away. "We should go order the cake. Do you want to come?"  
  
"Do I have to?"  
  
"Not right now."  
  
"Then godspeed loves," Alex said, stretching out on his chair as the two of them walked away. Lafayette smoothed back his hair and kissed his forehead, Alex beaming at them with what Hercules could only describe as heart eyes. They were disgusting, but in a good way.  
  
Alex sighed once they were gone. "I love them."  
  
"We know. We're kind of helping you plan your wedding right now," John deadpanned, holding Hercules' hand under the table. Alex sat back in his chair and scoffed.  
  
"I get you a boyfriend and free cake and _this_ is how you reward me? Fine, next time you need someone to date, don't text me in the middle of the night because _you_ don't know how to flirt with them."  
  
"...Who said there would be a next time?" John asked, then froze. Alex's jaw dropped and his eyebrows shot up, Hercules stared at John like he was the most beautiful thing on the planet and he _was_ .  
  
They said nothing. Alex opened and closed his mouth like a fucking goldfish and John refused to look anywhere else but straight ahead, where Alex was still fishing for words. Hercules focused on John, only on John, on his hair his eyes and how, when he blinked, his eyes fluttered closed instead of just shutting. He was still red, still holding onto Hercules' hand with an iron grip like he was afraid of him letting go, like he would even dream of it. His freckles stood stark against his skin and his lips stayed sealed shut.  
  
"We have to go talk to the lady about designs for the cake," Lafayette told Alex, when they got here being a mystery to the three of them. Alex nodded, glancing back at John and Hercules before going with them, guilty and a little too giddy to be out of the situation.  
  
John broke the silence. "Hercules, I —"  
  
"You don't have to say anything right now. Not if you don't want to. I feel the same way, though," he admitted. "I could spend the rest of my life at this table if it meant I got to spend it next to you."  
  
"I love you."  
  
Hercules kissed the top of his head. "I love you too." He paused. "You had to ask Alex how to flirt with me? _Alex?_ "  
  
"I wanted you to like me! I asked you to fix, like, twenty of my coats just so I would have more of a chance to talk to you and then you asked me out to dinner in the _summer_ and I couldn't even _wear_ a coat, which meant all my conversation points were gone, and so I had to go to the one person I know that knows you and ask him how I could make you fall in love with me."  
  
"It worked." Hercules smiled and kissed John, slinging his arm around his shoulders..  
  
John grinned. "I know."  
  
_(3:43)_ **_…..slime man_ ** _: Y'ALL LEFT EARLY ARE YOU OKAY!! IM SO SORRY!!!_ _  
_ _  
_ _(3:45)_ **_the best mom_ ** _: you're finE alex, we had a cute moment in the bakery and then we went home and went to sleep_ _  
_ _  
_ _(3:45)_ **_…..slime man_ ** _: THANK GOD IM SO SORRY_ _  
_ _  
_ _(3:46)_ **_the best mom_ ** _: you're fine!! alex!!_ _  
_ _  
_ _(3:46)_ **_…..slime man_ ** _: okaY!! good!! good good good!! I have to find fettuccine so we can take her to the vet so bye hercules!!_ _  
_ _  
_ _(3:47)_ **_the best mom_ ** _: bye hon!!_ _  
_ _  
_ 3.  
  
"Come out! We want to see you!" Lafayette called, wrapping their arms tighter around Alex, who was sitting in their lap grinning.  
  
Lucy sat squished next to Lafayette and Alex on the tiny couch in the formalwear store, praying to god that this was over soon so she wouldn't have to talk to anyone when she just wanted to sleep. Don't get her wrong, she loved Thomas, he was her brother, but she really felt like the odd one out sitting on a couch with two people who probably knew him better than she did at this point.  
  
Thomas moved away from home when he was eighteen, packed up and shipped out to go to college and never really came back. Took trips to Paris and New York every opportunity he had to come home, to see any of his family who stayed close to them. He ran away from it all, leaving Lucy wondering what she ever did to make him not want to see her.  
  
He came home an entirely different person twelve years after he left, the dark circles under his eyes gone, better hair, and suddenly he had a job and a law degree and _two_ significant others that he was marrying in a little over a year. It felt like someone new entirely walked into her house, masquerading as her brother, busting out a skin care routine and facial hair like this was something her brother would do.  
  
It took her a week of living in the same house with him, along with some careful spying and discussing it Anna, decided that no, Thomas probably hadn't been replaced by an imposter, leaving her with the reality that he actually did leave and become a whole new person, and left her in the dark about it for twelve whole years.  
  
"No, it makes me look like garbage! I'm putting the other one on."  
  
"If there has ever been, or will ever be, a time where Thomas actually looks like garbage, I will actually buy that statue you think is hot and eat it with nothing but salt for seasoning," Lafayette muttered, resting their head on Alex's shoulder.  
  
"Okay first of all the David _is_ hot, and also one of the most well known statues in the world, how you don't know its name is beyond me. Oh, and I told Thomas to just ask Hercules to do his tux but he said no because he's doing mine. Hercules wanted to do it, he literally told me to ask, because he needs money to buy John shit for Christmas because he's wild."  
  
"I can pay him to alter my dress," they offered, and Alex sighed.  
  
"Only if you want to. I don't want you to do something just because I mentioned it."  
  
"I need someone to do it anyway; my grandmother won't come in until about a week or two before the wedding, so she's unavailable."  
  
Thomas walked out of the dressing room, _finally_ , in a sleek black suit that seemed to already be tailored. He pulled his hair back and his ring stood stark against the dark fabric as he smoothed it down.  
  
"Can I pull this off? I don't think I can pull this off," Thomas mumbled, fiddling with his fingers.  
  
Lafayette stared at him. "If you can't pull it off, I will certainly pull it off _for_ you." Thomas sighed, looking up at the ceiling.  
  
"Stop."  
  
Alex wiggled his eyebrows. "He's not wrong, babe. Even if you don't wear that to our wedding, we wouldn't mind you wearing it _home_ ."  
  
Thomas squinted at them and then stormed back into the dressing room. Alex leaned back to Lafayette and whispered a little too loud:  
  
"If he wore that to our wedding I would literally die. He's so hot. I mean, like, he's literally so beautiful. I love him."  
  
"Me too," Lafayette whispered, and then Thomas came out again, fancy blue silk suit and different dress shoes. Intricate designs covered the suit jacket and pants, the shirt underneath black to match the lapels. He adjusted the cuffs and huffed, looking up at them.  
  
"That's the one," Alex said, getting up and grabbing his hips. "This is the _one_ ."  
  
Thomas leaned in close to him and pressed their foreheads together, _beaming_ . "I _know_ ."  
  
"You look beautiful, _mon ange_ ," Lafayette told him, standing up and hugging Thomas from behind. Thomas leaned back and kissed their jaw.  
  
"Thank you, love."  
  
Alex squeaked. "We're getting married!"  
  
Thomas bought his suit, insisting he _had to_ instead of just renting it, and Alex called Hercules to hem it. Lucy watched them walk next to her, wondering if Thomas remembered the fact that they had lunch plans, but not willing to mention them if they forgot. They kept walking until they hit the corner and Lafayette took Thomas's suit.  
  
"See you at home," Lafayette said, kissing him. Alex followed and then caught a cab, crawling into it with Lafayette and the suit and speeding away.  
  
Lucy looked up at him, twenty-two years old and feeling like a ten-year-old all over again. "Can I ask you a question?"  
  
"Yeah, of course!" They crossed the street and went into a little bistro, the darkness of room a large contrast to the brightness of outside. Lucy blinked as she tried to adjust to more than just the lights.  
  
"...Why did you leave home?" She asked, staring at him with wide eyes as they walked past the _please seat yourself_ sign. His shoulders tensed and he stopped.  
  
"I...couldn't stay there." He sighed and turned to her. "Dad made that house a living hell for me," he admitted. "I'm not sure if you remember, you were really little when he died, but he was terrible. To me, Mom, Mary, Jane, and I'm not sure how bad he was to Martha and Peter but I know it was bad, and even after he died, I had to get out. That house wasn't _home_ for me anymore. I couldn't stay."  
  
"Oh. I'm sorry I mentioned it, I didn't know that."  
  
Thomas swallowed. "I mean, he's dead now. He can't hurt anyone anymore." His breath came out unevenly, like he was trying not to cry, as he went to an empty table and sat down.  
  
Lucy dropped the subject immediately, becoming more fascinated with Thomas' relationship with Alex and Lafayette and their wedding in three months, wondering about color schemes and lights and where the wedding was in the first place. They planned to send invitations next week, but Thomas decided to show her pictures of the venue anyway, which was a small place in a park with lights lining the pathway up to a gazebo where they would stand. Lucy smiled as Thomas handed her his phone and went to the bathroom, going through the photo album that consisted of only photos of their reception space.  
  
**_lafayette <3_ ** _: !! could you pick up bandaids and ibuprofen on your way home!! it's okay if you can't!! fettuccine just scratched Alex and refuses to wear regular bandaids bc they're too ""boring"" but I will pin him if I gotta so really it's no worry bc notre petit pois is small and easy to tackle_ _  
_ _  
_ **_lafayette <3_ ** _: also I hope things are going well with your sister!! I love you so much!!_ _  
_ _  
_ **_sweet pea <3_ ** _: wE !! love you so much_ _  
_ _  
_ **_lafayette <3_ ** _: WHERE A R E YOU_ _  
_ _  
_ **_sweet pea <3_ ** _: ;)_ _  
_ _  
_ **_lafayette <3_ ** _: ,,,,if they have those little cat claw cover things can you get those too bc I love our daughter but she is Vicious sometimes_ _  
_ _  
_ Thomas came back and they finished lunch, stopping at Target and picking up everything before getting soft pretzels and going back to Thomas' apartment. He unlocked the door to reveal Alex on the ground, trying to worm away from Lafayette, who sat on top of him, holding his arm and trying to stick a beige bandaid over the scrapes on his skin.  
  
"Thomas help!" Alex called out, screaming as Lafayette stuck the bandaids on. "No!"  
  
"Yes!" Lafayette chanted, throwing their hands in the air. Fettuccine passed by and ran up the stairs, apathetic.  
  
Lucy turned to Thomas. "I'm gonna go sleep for a bit," she told him. He nodded and let her go before going back to his partners.  
  
"I got you pretzels," he said, and silence fell in their living room.  
  
"I fucking _love you_ !" Alex yelled, making Lucy laugh as she shut the bedroom door and crawled into bed .  
  
She had her brother back.  
  
4.  
  
Angelica sat back on their bed while Dolley and Martha got ready, sitting in front of the big vanity in their bedroom and trying to find their things in the piles of makeup and hair clips the three of them throw on it. Conversations about cleaning it have long since come and went, all three of them giving up hope that they would ever see the actual vanity surface again until they moved houses and were forced to clear it.  
  
**_thomass_ ** _: !! I'm so excited for this double date I just fell down four stairs and am currently being comforted by alex and fettuccine are you ready_ _  
_ _  
_ **_angie angie banana-fana fo fangie_ ** _: oh my god??_ _  
_  
"You okay, Doll?" Martha asked, glancing over as Dolley stared at her reflection in the mirror, eyes squinted.  
  
"Yeah, I'm fine." She leaned over and kissed Martha's cheek. "Just nervous."  
  
Angelica moved and sat down on her vanity bench. "About what?"  
  
"I mean…" She muttered. "It's your best friends fiances, one of which has been described as having a _divine energy_ and the other Burr literally calls the Hurricane. What if we get there and there's nothing to talk about and we look weird and they hate us?" She leaned on Angelica's shoulder. "I don't want them to hate us."  
  
"They _won't_ , love. They just want to meet everyone going to the wedding so it's less awkward. Also, we're going to Olive Garden, your favorite restaurant, and if things go bad we can go mini golfing or something after if you want," Angelica offered. Martha and Dolley beamed over at her.  
  
"I love you, thank you," Dolley said.  
  
Angelica kissed her shoulder. "I love you too."  
  
Dolley set down her comb on the table. "Also, how does their relationship work? Because James told me that Alex and Thomas weren't dating, but I went on his instagram and there were a _lot_ of pictures of him and Alex, and that doesn't seem like—"  
  
"James thought we were roommates!" Martha interrupted, laughing, "He's not exactly the most reliable source!" Dolley's ears perked up and she finally realized what others had much earlier: James Madison just could _not_ extrapolate.  
  
"Oh, _right_ ," Dolley sighed, shaking her head before pulling her hair up into the nicest bun Angelica ever saw, pulling her baby hairs down and letting them fall in coils to frame her face. Her eyeliner pointed sharply up, dark pink lipstick that just reminded Angelica of how much she wanted to kiss her. She was so beautiful, the simple image of her checking her makeup in the mirror was too much for Angelica to take.  
  
"I'm ready," Dolley announced, getting up from the vanity and picking up her coat from the bed. Martha and Angelica watched her, still staring at her dress and her hair and makeup and how fucking stunning she was and how lucky there were to have her. "What?"  
  
"You're fucking _gorgeous_ ," Martha breathed, getting up and pulling Dolley to her, barely giving her time to process before kissing her. Dolley made a noise, then melted into it, wrapping her arms around Martha's neck, smiling against her as she tried to function.  
  
Angelica rolled her eyes and laughed before going downstairs, letting them have their moment before they left.  
  
\---  
  
Whatever image of Alex and Lafayette Dolley and Martha have in their heads, Angelica had no idea. They've met Thomas, talked about trying to set Thomas up with a fair number of people that were either barely his type or not at all before he fell in love with Alex and Lafayette, and they knew what both of them looked like, so whether they matched up what they thought Thomas would be attracted to and the people provided, or came up with something entirely new, they kept Angelica entirely in the dark.  
  
She could tell, however, that whatever they thought was entirely wrong, the second they walked into the alcove where Lafayette, Alex, and Thomas sat grinning before they even arrived. Thomas sat in the middle, with Lafayette and Alex on either side. Lafayette had a red dress on, Thomas and Alex wearing ties to match. There were dark lipstick stains on Alex's cheek and Thomas' neck that they _had_ to know about, and Lafayette with clean skin and deep red lipstick on. She couldn't believe them.  
  
"Hi!" Martha greeted, tense shoulders relaxing as she saw them, shaking their hands as they stood up to shake hers. Thomas rounded the tables and hugged Angelica.  
  
"Our babes are meeting, I'm so happy!" He squeaked, turning to watch Lafayette and Alex talk to Martha and Dolley about their matching jackets, slung over the back of their chairs with the Mulligan label sewn into the back.  
  
"I know!"  
  
Olive Garden was just a good fucking place to meet people, Angelica thought, where you could fight over breadsticks and have the predetermined order scripts to curb your anxiety when the waitress came around. Passing the huge ass salad bowl to each other and eating your food _knowing_ that you have the best dish at the table despite everyone else thinking the same thing. It was nice, and watching the loves of her life and the loves of her best friend's life become friends made it even better, even when her and Thomas couldn't even contribute to the conversation, too preoccupied with watching them talk to each other to try and attempt it themselves.  
  
Thomas and Angelica paid, even with the arguing from everyone else at the table, and the chocolate mints were passed out. They were about to leave when Dolley turned to them and asked:  
  
"Hey, do you want to go mini golfing with us? We planned to head out after this, but we would love if you would come with!"  
  
And _God_ if Angelica didn't just want to cry. The simple fact that she felt comfortable enough to ask killed her in the best way. Thomas and Alex's eyes lit up and they looked over at Lafayette, like they wouldn't go along even if they didn't want to, just for the sake of the two of them. Admirable, really.    
  
"Of course!" Lafayette answered, holding Thomas' hand. "I do need to go to the car and get clothes to change into, though."  
  
Thomas kissed their cheek. "That's fine. Alex has to drive though because we both drank, like, three glasses of wine."  
  
Alex hugged Thomas and rested his chin on his chest. "Ugh, I hate driving. It's disgusting."  
  
"Speaking of," Martha spoke up, handing Angelica the keys. "We had wine, too."  
  
"You love to hurt me," Angelica told her, but grinned when Martha leaned up and kissed her forehead.  
  
"I love to love you more though."  
  
Angelica nodded. "You're cute."  
  
"Oh, I know."  
  
Thomas, Alex, and Lafayette left first, Angelica, Martha. and Dolley following close behind. They disappeared behind their car, with the exception of Alex, who crawled in the driver's seat, but Angelica could see through the back window as they opened the trunk and pulled other clothes out. Lafayette put on sweatpants under their dress, unzipping it to put a shirt on before taking the thing off. They kept the heels on though, beckoning Thomas to come closer as they started to unbutton his shirt and undo his tie. Alex winked at her and Thomas' laugh rang loud through the night as Lafayette pulled his shirt off of him.  
  
"Come on!" Angelica screamed. "We don't have all night!"  
  
Thomas' voice ran back, still smiling. "Fuck off!" Lafayette stared at him for a moment then kissed his chest, then his neck, then his lips.  
  
Alex honked the horn and rolled the window down. "I'm gonna call the fucking police on both of you for public indecency and you're going to go to jail and not get to kiss me or each other for months! _Is that what you want?_ " He yelled. They laughed and Thomas put a different shirt on, getting in the back seat so nobody had to be alone there. Alex sighed and started the car, waving to Angelica and turning to leave.  
  
Angelica got in the front seat, Dolley and Martha in the back talking about the book series they started last week. Martha started the second one while Dolley started the first, then when they were both finished they'd move on to the next respective book in the series. Angelica loved this, but didn't want to take part in it, content to let them do their thing and listened when one of them had to scream about a part of the book the other wasn't on yet.  
  
"We ready to go?" Martha asked, leaning forward to look at Angelica over her shoulder.  
  
Angelica kissed the side of her nose. "Yeah, they were just being disgusting and getting changed outside in the parking lot."  
  
"I know," Dolley told her. "We saw in the rearview mirror. Lafayette and Thomas are fucking _ripped_ ."  
  
Angelica snorted and turned out of the parking lot, driving behind Alex to the mini golf course.  
  
5.  
  
When Dolley got _good_ at mini golf, she will never fucking know. She always did terrible when they went before, but something about being here with another couple and the three additional set of eyes on her made her mini golf like she'd made a career out of it. Angelica cheered her on, whooping whenever she made it, Martha proud but quiet, studying her and trying to find out just how she did it. Alex and Thomas whined, while Lafayette sat back and kept score, sitting on a little bench on the side with sweatpants and stilettos on.  
  
Dolley leaned against the ropes, already having finished her turn, as Thomas finally made his and sat on the bench next to Lafayette, leaning his head on their shoulder. Lafayette looked over at him, straining their neck to do so.  
  
"What's wrong, _mon beau_ ?" They asked, kissing his head.  
  
"I'm tired. I just want to go home and cuddle you and Alex and go to bed."  
  
They laughed. "Then why did you agree to come? You were so excited in the car."  
  
"It's my best friend and her girlfriends! You were all having so much fun at dinner, I did want to go, but then halfway here I almost fell asleep and now I'm not as into it as I was back at Olive Garden."  
  
"Aw, Thomas."  
  
Thomas rested his chin on Lafayette's shoulder. "Who's winning?"  
  
"Dolley, actually," they said, looking up as Alex shot for the hole for the sixteenth time. "Alex is in last, _pauvre crevette_ ."  
  
"Really?" He looked down at the paper, eyes wide. "Lafayette, your handwriting is atrocious."  
  
They shrugged. "Big hands, _petit crayon_ . I tried to get Alex to do it but he's still fixated on thinking he can do sports." They yelled the last part loud enough for Alex to hear.  
  
"Rude!" Alex shouted.  
  
"Love you, _mon petit crevette!_ " They called, grinning when Alex smiled and went to try and get it again. "He really sticks his ass out when he does that, how I didn't notice before really is a contradiction to my character."  
  
"You're insatiable."  
  
Alex got it in after his nineteenth try, much to the relief of everyone else playing. They got up and moved on, making way for Dolley as she got it in on the first try, causing everyone else to be filled with a mix of impressed and jealous. She sat down next to Lafayette on the bench and waited. Thomas got his in on the second try, earning a cheer from the previously impartial Lafayette and a quick kiss from Alex.    
  
Thomas ran over to Lafayette and kissed their forehead. "Do you want me to score for you for a little bit?"  
  
"Love, your hands are bigger than mine. You'll die."  
  
"Yeah, but my hands are fine now. If you're hurting, I can let you rest for a little while and do it so you don't have to develop carpal tunnel from this alone."  
  
They reached up and kissed him. "I'm fine my love." He nodded.  
  
"Okay, I love you. Do you want to take a bath with me and Alex when we get home? We can use the bubble bath Alex got me for my birthday that I'm _sure_ he wanted to keep for himself."  
  
"We're going to fall asleep in it."  
  
"Who cares, as long as I get to be with you two."  
  
Angelica hit her club against the ground and yelled to Thomas, "HEY, APPLE BOTTOM BITCH, LET'S GO!"  
  
" _Angelica!_ " Thomas screamed, running after the rest of them as Dolley and Lafayette trailed behind, cursing because they only had two scores for that round.  
  
Dolley ended up winning, to no surprise, with Angelica, Thomas, Martha, Alex, and Lafayette coming after her. Lafayette didn't even play, just put themself as zero down the list to comfort whoever came in last. Fortunately, it was Alex, so they got to aid their attempt by kissing him and making comments about what they were going to do when they got home to soothe his bitter heartache. Dolley learned how to block people out, a useful skill.  
  
"To celebrate my win, next time we go out, y'all are buying me something _nice_ ," Dolley told them, walking backwards as she went to their car.  
  
"Deal," Thomas answered, laughing as Alex pulled him and pushed him into the backseat.  
  
Martha crawled in the back and went to sleep, forcing Dolley into the front. Not that she was complaining, being with Angelica was something she always enjoyed doing. The half of her hair she left down hung long down to her waist, lip gloss worn off but eyeshadow still poppin', beauty mark on her cheekbone still visible under her makeup. In that moment, Dolley didn't care about any creation forged by man or God himself throughout history, nothing could ever capture her heart or the breath in her lungs like Angelica Schuyler.  
  
"Why don't we ever take baths together?" Dolley questioned, watching as Angelica sped down the road. "Like, just being quiet and romantic and shit with each other in a water setting."  
  
Angelica shrugged. "I don't know. Is that something you _want_ to do?"  
  
" _Very_ much, yes," Dolley admitted, kissing her shoulder. "We don't have to just _sit_ in the bathtub, though. We could do other things."  
  
"Tomorrow," Angelica told her, glint in her eyes. "Tomorrow night."  
  
Dolley grinned and sat back. "I can't wait."

**Author's Note:**

> lmao thomas has c-ptsd bc I like to proJECt and the nightmare is based on one I had so !! lmao!! 
> 
> hope you liked it!! feel free to talk to me on tumblr @lol-phan-af!!


End file.
